{"id":6845,"date":"2016-11-12T12:27:36","date_gmt":"2016-11-12T17:27:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admiringlight.com\/blog\/?p=6845"},"modified":"2024-09-05T16:16:42","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T21:16:42","slug":"review-sony-zeiss-fe-50mm-f1-4-za-planar-t","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/admiringlight.com\/blog\/review-sony-zeiss-fe-50mm-f1-4-za-planar-t\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Sony Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 ZA Planar T*"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The normal prime range in the Sony FE mount is beginning to get quite crowded. Today I’m looking at the latest f\/1.4 lens in this range, the Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 Planar T*, which is the fastest of the native FE mount normal primes.  Sony also offers the excellent 55mm f\/1.8<\/a>, the 50mm f\/1.8<\/a>, and the 50mm f\/2.8 Macro, while Zeiss offers the Loxia 50mm f\/2 and Rokinon has an autofocus 50mm f\/1.4 as well.  There is a lot of choice in this segment now, but Sony and Zeiss think that many serious shooters will pony up the $1,498 for this lens due to exceptional optical quality.  Let’s find out if they succeeded in creating something that is truly worth that exorbitant price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The Sony Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 ZA Planar on the Sony A7 II<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Construction and Handling<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Sony Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 is a tank of a lens. If you’ve handled the FE 35mm f\/1.4, the construction is essentially identical. It’s a very large, heavy lens that is constructed entirely of metal, with a metal ribbed focus ring and solid switches.  The 50mm f\/1.4 isn’t quite as long or heavy as the 35mm f\/1.4, but it still dwarfs a lens like the FE 55mm f\/1.8, as you can see below. The FE 50mm f\/1.4 is larger than most 50mm lenses with an f\/1.4 aperture, but lenses of this size aren’t as uncommon as they once were, as lenses have grown a bit recently to better correct for lens aberrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"FE<\/a>
FE 55mm f\/1.8 and FE 50mm f\/1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Zeiss 50mm f\/1.4 also follows the 35mm f\/1.4 (and the 85mm f\/1.8 GM) by including a knurled aperture ring. I’m a big fan of aperture rings on lenses, and it’s one of the things I like most about the Fujifilm X series, but on the Sony FE lenses, it causes more confusion than anything. Since only a handful of FE lenses have aperture rings, it simply adds a different control paradigm that confuses my muscle memory when switching lenses. The aperture ring does have very nice damping and solid detents at 1\/3 stop increments. The aperture ring is also very nice for video shooters, as there is a switch that can be flipped to remove the detents entirely, allowing for smooth and silent aperture control during video use.  The broad ribbed focus ring is well damped and very smooth to operate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The lens features a switch to toggle the aperture ring detents.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While the FE 50mm f\/1.4 isn’t a small or light lens, it handles reasonably well on any of the Sony Mark II bodies with the larger hand grip, though it’s a bit unwieldy for the smaller grips in earlier E-Mount cameras. The biggest issue is the added weight in the camera bag.  At over a pound and a half, you definitely feel the lens in your bag. For my personal shooting, I prefer the much more compact and lightweight 55mm f\/1.8, but as you’ll see on the next page, there are definitely reasons to choose this lens over the 55mm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autofocus<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The FE 50mm f\/1.4 has a reasonably fast and quiet autofocus motor, and I had few issues during the review period.  In good light, the lens locks very quickly and accurately. In dimmer light, as is the case with most lenses on the A7 II, focus slows down and occasionally can have some trouble locking on lower contrast targets, but overall I found the AF on par with the FE 55mm f\/1.8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For moving targets, the lens is fast enough to keep up with most casual action shooting, such as the shot of this woman biking below, but it has a bit more trouble when something is rapidly approaching the lens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Biking<\/a>
Biking – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 @ f\/1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Now let’s dive into the real meat of the review, and see if the optics can justify the high price of the lens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue: Image Quality<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Image Quality<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

So, we know this lens is expensive.  We also know it’s big and heavy. The reason for both of those is likely in service of the optics, and I have to say that if you can afford this lens and you don’t mind the weight, the optics completely justify both. The FE 50mm f\/1.4 is one of the finest normal primes ever made, and even with my high expectations for the lens, it handily exceeded them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before we get to the impressive optics of this lens, I will start on one of the few negatives: the lens has fairly high transmission losses, so while the lens produces depth of field in line with its f\/1.4 aperture, the lens exposes only slightly brighter than the FE 55mm f\/1.8 when both are wide open, and a little less than a half stop darker when both are shot at the same aperture.  So, if you’re buying this lens for faster shutter speeds in dim light, know that it is actually less than 1\/3 stop brighter than the FE 55mm f\/1.8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharpness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The normal prime, despite being one of the oldest and most used lenses in photographic history, has always been difficult to design for maximum sharpness at very wide apertures. While fast telephoto lenses have generally been very sharp wide open for decades, the normal prime has generally needed to be stopped down a bit before things become very crisp.  Sony’s first entry in this realm for the FE mount was the FE 55mm f\/1.8, a lens that is very sharp wide open and exceptional stopped down.  Zeiss created what many see as the ultimate normal prime in the absolutely massive Otus 55mm f\/1.4. Now Sony and Zeiss have teamed up to bring resolution performance that rivals the Otus in a much more affordable package, and it shows.  The FE 50mm f\/1.4 is the sharpest normal prime I’ve ever used. Shot wide open, it’s simply blisteringly sharp across essentially the entire frame: a truly mind blowing result. This is truly a lens that can be shot at any aperture and achieve extremely high-resolution. Compared to the already excellent FE 55mm f\/1.8, it’s simply no contest, and handily outresolves that excellent lens both wide open and at similar apertures. Check out my comparison between the two lenses<\/a> for 100% crops of each that will show you how excellent the 50mm f\/1.4 truly is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Supreme<\/a>
Supreme Court – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 @ f\/8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Stopped down even a bit slightly improves quality across the frame from excellent to simply razor-sharp, but frankly there’s not a lot of improvement that can happen given how good the lens performs at f\/1.4. When you make the 55mm f\/1.8 look pedestrian, you’ve achieved something astounding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bokeh<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps equally astounding is that the lens doesn’t sacrifice bokeh to achieve the excellent sharpness. The FE 50mm f\/1.4 produces blur that is smooth an even, without nervousness, even at smaller apertures.  The rounded aperture blades maintain a round shape to specular highlights even as small as f\/8, which is very impressive.  There is a very minimal bright ring outline that can occasionally show a hint of a greenish fringe, but this is fairly well controlled for a lens of this type. Overall, I found the look of blurred backgrounds to be excellent with the 50mm f\/1.4 Planar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Flowers<\/a>
Flowers Under the Bridge – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 @ f\/1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Color, Contrast and Chromatic Aberration<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The FE 50mm f\/1.4 also displays outstanding color and contrast at any aperture.  There is no reduction of contrast at wide apertures, and there’s plenty of that Zeiss pop that they have become known for.  The color rendition is clean and natural, with good saturation that isn’t over the top. Truly nothing to complain about here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both axial and lateral chromatic aberrations are controlled extremely well on the FE 50mm f\/1.4. Lateral CA is essentially non-existent, and isn’t visible in images, even when viewed at 100%.  Even longitudinal CA is extremely well controlled. While a slight magenta or green fringe can very occasionally be seen, even when it does appear, it is extremely minor, and I never felt the need to try to correct it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Broad<\/a>
Broad Street at Night – Sony A7 II with Zeiss FE 50mm f\/1.4 @ f\/1.4, handheld<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Distortion, Flare and Vignetting<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Likewise, the FE 50mm f\/1.4 fares very well when it comes to distortion control, with very low distortion that isn’t field relevant.  The shot at the top of this page was corrected for perspective, but no distortion correction was performed. In some shots, there is very minor barrel distortion, but it’s not something one ever really needs to worry about.  The lens also performs extremely well with regards to flare, as contrast is maintained with the sun in the frame and ghosting is extremely minimal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only aberration worth noting is fairly significant vignetting, which is noticeable at wide apertures, but never fully goes away upon stopping down.  Still, I actually like a bit of falloff towards the edges, so this is a non-issue for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In all, the FE 50mm f\/1.4 is one of the very best lenses I’ve had the chance to test, and is absolutely the best in the normal range. It is blisteringly sharp, has very good bokeh, outstanding color and contrast and controls distortion, CA and flare extremely well.  It’s an extremely impressive optic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue: Conclusion and Image Samples<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Pros<\/h4>\n\n\n\n